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Friday, November 22, 2013

I Was There.....

Fifty years ago today, I can't believe it has been 50 years, I can't possibly be that old, I was there when President Kennedy was shot and killed in Dallas, TX. I was engaged to be married to my sweetie, our wedding date was the following January, so I opted not to return to school that September, instead to get a job and make a little money prior to getting married.

I worked for a professional campaign group to raise money for research for childhood Leukemia. It was the ideal job, and rather interesting to be a part of such a worthy cause, and because it was only 6 months in length it ended just prior to my wedding date....perfect. We were headquartered in temporary office space in downtown Dallas, just a block or two away from where the Presidential Motorcade was scheduled to appear. It was lunchtime and a co-worker and I decided we would try and make our way thru the crowds to get a glimpse of President & Mrs. Kennedy prior to eating lunch.

Well, you can imagine the masses of people that were lining the streets prior to our arrival. There was no way we could see with crowds being 10-12 people deep. But, to our luck a large delivery truck had stopped on the side-street right in back of the crowd. He was sitting behind his wheel and I could tell from the height of his truck he had the perfect spot to see over all the tall heads. Never being the shy one, I politely asked if we could climb up and stand on the running boards..."ofcourse", he replied. It wasn't but a few short minutes later that we could hear and then see the beginnings of the motorcade, horns honking, cheers, flags waving and then almost in a blink the car with the President and Mrs. Kennedy sped past and all the excitement was over. They seemed to be traveling exceptionally fast but I do remember the pink suit and hat that Jackie Kennedy was wearing that day.

We thanked the truck driver, climbed down and hurried into the restaurant across the street from our office. We ate a quick lunch, already running late to return to work, and as we hurried out of the restaurant a man was walking down the street with a portable radio. He had a frightful look on his face and then began to yell, "the President has been shot". No, we just saw him, how could that be??

As we returned to work, radios were on, someone found a TV and sure enough, just a few blocks from where we were waving and cheering the President shots rang out, hitting President Kennedy and also wounding our Texas Governor John Connally who was riding in the same car. They were rushed to the closest hospital, where the President was pronounced dead shortly thereafter.

Shock was the only way I can describe the emotion that hit us all. How could this possibly happen? There was no more working that day, businesses immediately shut down, people went home to be with their loved ones. We all remember where we were in those times when tragedy hits, ie: the assassination of Martin Luther King in 1968, when the Space Shuttle, Challenger exploded shortly after take-off in 1986, 9-11-2001...we all remember certain events in our lifetimes, and where we were when it occurred.

So today, I am grateful for those memories, the thrill of being part of that crowd that cheered and hailed the President of the United States, followed by the feelings of shock and despair after those shots rang out from the roof of the Book Depository Building.

"As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them." ~ John F. Kennedy

22 comments:

Oh my goodness, what a mix of emotion in such a short time. Thank you for sharing. I wasn't around then, I only have memories of where my parents and grandparents were. Even in Canada, the shock was deep.

Cold chills reading this, Deanna. And, like you, I can't believe it was 50 years ago. In some ways it seems like yesterday, so vivid are the memories. And great minds ... I used the very same JFK on my post today at Camper!

Wow Deanna, This post gave me chills...I do remember where I was that fateful day. Believe it or not I was 7 years old at the time and in school. When the news came out they sent all the kids home. Those who were able to walked home and I recall them telling us that the President had been shot and killed and we were to hurry home and not dilly dally and to keep quiet on our way home. Even though I was very young I still recall that moment and how we just seemed to know that it was something really serious and that we had best not be joking or laughing on our way home. I can't imagine actually being there, seeing the President and then learning the news that he'd been shot and killed. Truly a sad day in American history.

Thank you for sharing your story. I can't imagine how that must have been, to see the president riding by and then to hear he was shot soon after. I was a baby then, so I don't remember anything, of course. But I remember my parents talking about it and how they learned about it. It was a terrible day for our country.

That is pretty amazing Deanna! I was in high school and 15 years old, and was watching a program on the TV with my grandmother when that came on the news. It was one of those moments , for me, that was frozen in time and I also will not ever forget it. Now, you and I have traded places in the country. Quite an amazing post.

I was just two months old. I am from the Midwest and still live 14 miles from where I grew up. My mother is from Dallas and she was telling me the other day that she remembers the watching tv that day and just holding me. I am the oldest of her seven children. She told me that my father and my grandparents walked in just at mid afternoon and they all just sat around the tv. My father said today he remembered what they were doing that day as well. Amazing that you were there. My mother and father were married in Dallas though my mother had moved to San Francisco a few years earlier but she wanted to get married in her home town. For me I remember I was in high school when Reagan got shot and when the pope got shot in 1981. I was going to go out for dinner on 9/11 for my birthday-- we didn't go. My sister was supposed to have had her bone marrow transplant on 9/11 but fortune was guiding us and she had it 2 weeks earlier and is alive to talk about it today. For some reason there are days we remember. You saw a piece of history. As has been stated previous it is good you saw the before.

Hard for me to believe it was 50 years ago and when it is said out loud even harder for me to believe. As I was in collage when this happened I find it hard to come to the realization of the time of my life passing. OK, now I am depressed.

Oh my goodness, Deanna! You were there for history! So amazing and so sad for you as just a young girl. I remember that day well. I was in school, watching it live on television because I grew up in Massachusetts and we were proud of our home grown President. I remember my teacher's crying in the hallways - students sent home. My Mother told me to remember because I was living through history. What a time we grew up in! Thanks so much for sharing your story. Hugs xo Karen

It is hard to realize that day was 50 years ago. Whoa!I was a senior in High School in Dallas. Many of my friends went down to see the President. I went to school. We were in Home Economics when someone ran in saying the President had been shot. We all thought she was kidding. Then, shortly the Principal came on the PA system, announcing the bad news.So long ago, and yet, it seems just yesterday.

You have quite a story to tell of that day! I remember it clearly, too. I was in junior high choir and we were singing "This Is My Country." Someone came in, interrupted our song, and told us the news. We all cried. We couldn't sing after that. Thanks for sharing your memories!

Deanna - thank you for sharing your story of that day. When I was completing my studies in Social Work we visited the state mental institution where we were ushered through the 'shock' ward - the ward so often replicated in movies and TV showing the most broken down population of the institution - the one behind bolted doors. Going through that ward, one thing that still sticks out in my mind was when the therapist told us that nearly most of the patients couldn't tell you what they had for breakfast, but each and every one of them could remember where they were when Pearl Harbor was attacked, or when President Kennedy was assassinated. These events that leave such a strong imprint on the memory.

What a story Deanna. So glad you were able to see the President and First Lady that day. I was but one year old when this happened, so of course do not remember a thing about it, but have always heard my Mom and Dad discussing this day, and the many days after when they were glued to their TV set. Such a tragedy, such a time changing event. Thank you for sharing your story with us.